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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23984524">Torn - Layers of Darkness</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/FeedtheFear/pseuds/FeedtheFear'>FeedtheFear</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hannibal (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE, F/M, M/M, Multi, Possibel Masturbation, Possible Anal Sex, Possible Bottom Hannibal, Possible Bottom Will, Possible Top Hannibal, Possible Top Will, Possible violence, possible graphic violence, possible sex</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 19:55:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,230</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23984524</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/FeedtheFear/pseuds/FeedtheFear</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hey FannibalFamily! &lt;3</p>
<p>This is an interactive Hannibalfic I started on Twitter a few weeks ago.</p>
<p>I write and you decide how it continues. :-)<br/>There will be a signpost at the end of every chapter.</p>
<p>On Twitter I will tweet a poll where you can choose your preferred way.</p>
<p>I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Love you all!! :-)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Abigail Hobbs/Hannibal Lecter, Alana Bloom/Will Graham, Will Graham &amp; Abigail Hobbs, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. What will she become?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As she steps around the corner, all she can hear are the heavy raindrops, hitting her umbrella. She slows down.<br/>
Slower and slower as she approaches the house with the striking facade. She knows where she is. She has been here many times before.<br/>
Felt save, felt ridiculously lucky to have such a devoted, sweet man to visit, to talk to, to have sex with. She remembers how she walked up the stairs and rang the bell, waiting for this man to appear in front of her.<br/>
Today is different. Today the happiness and the feeling of safety are gruesomely flushed out of her mind as if all the infuriated raindrops gather themselves together and form a big, terrifying wave that punches against her skull and her body against the wall of the building on the opposite street side.</p><p>She imagines it vividly. A warning of her mind.</p><p>
  <em>Don´t go into the lions den. He will see you, crutching his claws over the floor, ready to strike. He will be faster than you, he will nail you down and press his teeth into your neck. Are you sure you will do what is necessary?</em>
</p><p>No, she doesn´t stop. She´s moving forward. Every cell in her body begs her to pull back. To just turn around and feel the safety again.<br/>
But this safety would not be given freely to her. That is what she knows, feels, and curses. Fear and pain would poison her home, her bed, her beer. She would have to punch the picture in the mirror.<br/>
She wants to be brave, she has to. And so she approaches the door and freezes, as she notices a gap in it.</p><p><em>Will and Jack are already here.</em><br/>
The fear in her stomach nearly forces her to puke. She swallows the ascending fluid down, reaches into her purse and finds her gun.</p><p>And with the next step, she enters the den.<br/>
<em>So that nothing shall happen to me.</em></p><p>Silence. Then, with the next step, a tormenting rumpling sound. And as she turns right, her heart skips a beat. She sees Hannibal as he bounces against the door of the pantry, his white shirt covered in blood.</p><p>"Hannibal!"<br/>
He turns around and looks at her.<br/>
"I was hoping you and I wouldn't have to say good-bye. Nothing said nor seen."<br/>
He takes a step towards her.<br/>
"Stop", she yells, pointing the gun at him uptight. A pulsating ache runs through her fingers.<br/>
Hannibal does how he is told.<br/>
"I was so blind"<br/>
"In your defense, I worked very hard to blind you. You can stay blind. You can hide from this. Walk away. I'll make no plans to call on you. But if you stay, I will kill you. … Be blind, Alana. Don't be brave"</p><p>Alana holds her breath. What will she become?</p><p><br/>
Alana pulls the trigger -  48.6%<br/>
Alana lowers the gun -  51.4%</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. To the truth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Part 2 :-) You decided: Alana lowers the gun.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A breath, she didn´t realize she was holding escapes her throat. She will wait and see what will happen. In the next instant Hannibal's voice rises, navigating a shiver through her body. "Go, leave this all behind now," says Hannibal in a soft voice. But this softness doesn´t carry her to whatever softness implies. It´s more like a moist, cold tongue that slides over her naked body. His eyes are sticking on hers as she slowly finds the courage to loosen up her stiffness. When she starts to walk backward, she takes a moment to study his face. He looks exhausted. Exhausting from what has been and from what is about to come. Alana knows that Will isn´t here. But she expects him to be here soon. It seems like that´s a foreshadowing they both share. Except hers is pointing towards deploration and his towards an absolution. </p><p>"What are you going to do to him? ... Hannibal?" A hint of bitterness is planting itself in his eyes. "Whatever happens to Will is preordained. Now go Alana. It is time for you to leave." </p><p>Alana does just that. Walking backward, she takes the same route as before, like she is hypnotized by his voice. She doesn´t turn around, fearing he would suddenly appear behind her. As she arrives outside, she steps into the rain and surrenders herself to the cold. <br/>She lifts her head, opens her eyes, and lets the rain splash upon her face as if she wants to let it pour into her skull to wash away all the pain and frustration. She blinks, something in the window on the second floor catches her attention.</p><p><em>Oh my god. Abigail</em>  <br/>A smile erupts in her face, followed by a shiver through her body which forces her to reach into her jacket and grab out her phone. </p><p> </p><p><br/>"They know." Two words. One meaning? Two words with which Hannibal wanted to warn Garret Jacob Hobbs. Hannibal was curious about what would happen. What he would do. Is it curiosity that sparks in his core now? Curiosity is a driving force that holds the promise of one reality, with no fear of a bad outcome. No emotion obscuring the judgment. It´s untouchable, powerful. Freedom. Does he feel free? Does he feel untouchable? </p><p>The cap makes a right turn. Will stares at the windshield wipers how they turn left and right. Left and right, clearing the shield again and again. But it doesn´t matter how often they wipe, the sight will be blurred, again and again. No sign of a victory. Hopeless. <br/>He knows. He did all along. He wants Hannibal to be gone. Gone, but save. He wants to go into his home without finding Jack lying dead on the floor. He wants ... them all save. The cap finds its destination and as Will goes through the fence, he frowns as he recognizes Alana standing to his right, pressing her back against the wall. </p><p>"What are you doing here?" <br/>"Hannibal and Jack are inside. Hannibal will kill him. I called the police and the ambulance. A few minutes ago. They will be here soon but we have to go and distract him until they arrive." <br/>Will nods. "Yes, I´ll do that. You stay here." <br/>"What? No. I´ll come with you." Will grabs her arm and stops her from walking forward. "No, Alana. Wait here. … Please." Will turns around.<br/>"Will! Abigail, ... she´s alive. She´s here. I saw her," says Alana. <br/>Will frowns. Unconsciously a soft and relief smile runs over his face. His head jumps to the front door and starts to shake. And after a few seconds, all he wants to do is move. </p><p><em>We could disappear now, tonight. [...] To the truth then, and all its consequences.</em> </p><p>Will finds his way into the kitchen and looks around. Immediately his eyes catch a pool of blood, crawling under the door of the pantry room and over the floor. The silence in the house is nearly unbearable. And as he takes one more step forward, he hears someone creeping up from behind. He turns around and sees Abigail standing in front of him, her face dipped in terror. Even if he prepared his mind to see her while walking in this house, he still can´t quite process the fact that she´s standing in front of him. Alive. So he just smiles and enjoys the warm feeling that rises in him.  <br/>"Abigail." <br/>"I didn´t know what else to do, so I just did what he told me." <br/>"Where is he?" <br/>Abigail's eyes twitch a little to the right, planting the route for him. And so he follows it. </p><p>"Hannibal," Will says and the next thing he sees is his face, studying him. "I know I can´t make it right. Not right now. I know what I did. Please. We have to go. Now! The police is on its way. Let us disappear. Like planned." </p><p>Hannibal watches him in silence, his right hand around the knife behind his back.</p><p><br/>Hannibal stabs Will -               25.5%<br/>Hanni puts the knife away -    74.5%</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Or can we start to heal, to forgive each other?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Part 3</p><p>You decided: Hannibal puts the knife away.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Out of the corner of his eye, Will detects how Hannibal leads his right hand to his pocket. Something slides lower along the fabric while their eye contact doesn´t break.</p><p>In these seconds, between all possible worlds, the pull between them is too strong. It´s filled with disappointment and hunger. Like a knife, it cuts through their eyes, forcing water into them. And right before Will thinks he can´t suppress a scream any longer, Hannibal´s voice shatters the tension in thousands of little pieces. "This isn´t over." <br/>Will nods. "You´re right. It isn´t." <br/>"Abigail. Go upstairs and get your bag," Hannibal says without breaking his and Will´s connection. Once again, his hand moves. This time it´s the left one that reaches into his other pocket and reveals some keys. "Go to my garage. Open it and prepare the car. I will follow Abigail and -." Hannibal stops for a second, just to throw a look over to her. <br/>But Will knows, this gesture is only meant for him. <br/>"- get some dry clothes." <br/>With that, he walks by Will and nods at Abigail, demonstrating that he wants her to follow him. </p><p>Will turns around. His eyes cling on hers as if he wants to preserve her body. Her soul, her organs. Forever save, never lost again. <br/>She smiles, but in her eyes lays a mixture of distress and anxiety. How could it be any different? Will can feel it, too. And without looking, he can feel Jacks blood wandering closer and closer. <br/>As soon as he is alone, he finds the strength to guide his eyes to the left. <br/><em>Too much</em>  <br/>He can nearly taste it on his tongue. Suddenly he feels sick like he could fade at any moment. But he can´t open the door, can´t help him. All he can do is hoping and believing that this stubborn man will fight the sweet temptation of surrendering himself to the sleep. With the next thought, Will finds himself moving fast through the dining room. He follows the small passage outside along the wall until he arrives at the garage. He opens the door, finds the Bentley behind it, and waits in the driver´s seat. Soon after Hannibal appears in front of him, wearing a red sweater and carrying the dirty button-up shirt in his hand. </p><p>And as Will sees Abigail coming around the corner, he instinctively gets out of the car and embraces her. After a second of astonishment, she copies the gesture. They need no words. And in one second to the next, Will feels all the pain falling off his shoulders, creating a crater at the ground. He can also feel Hannibal´s eyes on him. But all those thousand of stitches simultaneously carry a breeze of warmth with them. </p><p>When they hear sirens approaching the house, Hannibal gets into the car and waits until Will and Abigail take their seats. He starts the car at the time the volume of the sirens suggests the arrival of the police and manages to get away undetected as the loud soundwave grows distant. </p><p>Passing blocks and lawn areas, they drive north on the interstate highway until Hannibal takes the exit in Elkridge. For some time they see nothing but trees before Hannibal turns right and drives up to a beautiful wooden house. <br/>"What are we doing here?" The first words that escape Wills tongue since they got into the car. <br/>"Changing cars. We shouldn´t waste any time," Hannibal replies without looking at him and gets out. He opens up the garage next to the house and reveals a black Skoda Superb Combi with darkened windows. <br/>"Will, please drive the Bentley into the garage as soon I´m out," Hannibal says with a clouded politeness. </p><p>All together again, they soon find their way back on the highway. </p><p>"Secondary home?" Will breaks the silence once more. <br/>Hannibal exhales. "Just the car. For special occasions." <br/>"For those after you change your mind?" Will looks down to the right pocket of Hannibal's pants that reveals the outline of his knife. <br/>"Usually it´s reserved for a cold body," Hannibal counters and faces Will, making sure he understood. He does, loud and clear. "You played me, I played you. It´s a game that can never be satisfied, can it? ... So are we doomed to fall onto the same game board, the same pattern? Over and over again? Or can we start to heal, to forgive each other?" <br/>"I guess I am curious to see what you will offer me for my forgiveness, then," Hannibal replies while speeding up. </p><p>They sit in silence for a few minutes. Minutes that feel like hours. And as Will looks over to Hannibal again, he meets his eyes. "I certainly know what you could offer me for mine," Will says and a cautious, little smirk runs over his face. "You know I can´t leave my dogs behind." <br/>"Will. You have seven dogs. It´s not the smartest thing to do when you want to fly under the radar." <br/>"We can make it. If we work smart." Will doesn´t take his eyes from him, longing for an answer. But as he realizes that he would starve while waiting, he turns around to Abigail. "Do you like dogs, Abigail?" <br/>Will throws a teasing smile to Hannibal that he catches annoyed. Will doesn´t care. He will explode if he can´t enlighten the situation just a little bit.  <br/>"Yes," answers Abigail. <br/>"So are you on my side?" <br/>"Yes," she repeats and grins at him, realizing what he´s doing. <br/>"First thing you have to learn about parenting, Hannibal. You always have to satisfy the needs of the child." <br/>"A dog is not a child, Will. So what makes you the expert on parenting all of a sudden?" <br/>"Both crave affection." <br/>Hannibal exhales slowly and silence returns like a speer over their heads. </p><p>But after a while, Will starts to recognize the area, and soon after he spots the sign of Virginia in the distance. <br/>"Thank you," Will whispers, lost in thought. And as he follows the trees scampering by, he has one final question on his mind.</p><p>"So, what´s next?" </p><p>Where do Hannibal, Will and Abigail go:</p><p> </p><p>Italy -                              35.7%<br/>Cuba -                            31%<br/>Hannibal´s Cliffhouse -  21.4%<br/>Germany -                      11.9%</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Do you wanna see what I see?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Part 4</p><p>You decided: Hannibal, Will, and Abigail are going to Italy</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>From black to blue. He blinks, his eyelid rises and his pupils are welcomed by a sudden burn like flames kiss him good morning. <br/><em>Not yet.</em> </p><p>Slowly the sunlight climbs over the window sill, crawling over the ground and stroking his body gently that lays uncovered on the mattress. He moves, just a little. Stuck between two worlds, his subconscious holds him tight, not allowing his mind to flee from the truth that lays deep underneath his skull. <br/><em>Not yet.</em> </p><p>He feels no warmth. Maybe he did for a second, but not anymore. Behind his eyes, he floats in a frozen lake. He sinks deeper, and deeper. No more strength left in his limbs. No more fight in him either? <br/>He sinks quietly like a sailor with his riddled boat on the water whose only choice left is acceptance. But with acceptance comes the real challenge to face the horror of being unable to change a reality. And as he looks up to the ice sheet, he sees himself walking from a distance over to him, crouching down and fishing his eyes from above. Even if the twins are about twenty meters apart, he can still hear his voice running through his body. </p><p>
  <em>Feeling better now? What´s to come and what has been are no longer the same. Can you still control the fading of yourself in the mirror? Are you the one who still holds the brushes and controls which layers of your skin gets darker? Do you wanna see what I see?</em>
</p><p>The picture twitches. The face begins to wrinkle and soon after that the whole head shakes, freeing itself of its old form. An invisible knife cuts countless times into his flesh. Blood blurts out and runs over his skin. His lips etch away, revealing a sinister and masochistic large smile underneath them. His eyes dye black and threaten to fall out of his skull as his now bald and bloody head is ripped open from above while a nauseating cracking sound underlays the scenario. <br/><em>Now! </em></p><p>Unable to compensate for his fear, Will´s face suddenly moves in terror. He screams, and water fills his mouth and throat. His eyes, unable to hide from the scene in front of him, are tied up in shock. </p><p>
  <em>No, no, no, no ... NO! </em>
</p><p>His whole body begins to shake now. As if it´s attacked by an earthquake, the water around him trembles, pressure rises underneath him, pulling him up until he reaches the ice sheet and welcomes his disfigured self.</p><p>
  <em>NOW!! </em>
</p><p>---</p><p>Will jumps awake and gasps for air as if the dream is still haunting him. It takes him a minute to realize where he is. Slowly he calms down as Buster jumps on his bed and curls into his lap to comfort him. The smell of sweat and dog floats like a mist in the small room.</p><p>And as the fog in his eyes fades bit by bit, he notices the pool of cold sweat on his sheets and feels the fabric of his white shirt sticking to his skin. He drags it over his shoulders, lifts Buster carefully on his feet, and gets out of the bed. He goes over to his closet and pulls out a black button-up shirt and black jeans. While he dresses himself, he looks through the window and lets his eyes wander over the green idyllic fields. <br/>He doesn´t know what time it is, nor can he relive the last evening. <br/>All he remembers is how the three of them drove from the airport with the rented SUV to the closest supermarket and over to this house. It was late. The small roads were crowded with people who were on their way to experience the nightlife of Florence. Will chased them with interest, haunted by the thought that all these people, in all their joy had no idea that three killers were on tour. He nearly burst out laughing over this, but the thought of Jack´s blood punched him his cynicism in the face and rammed it right down his throat. <br/>He won´t know for a long time now if Jack had survived or not. And with him unable to banish these images out of his mind, his urge for something fluid grew stronger and stronger by the second. <br/>And as he pressed the whiskey bottle in Hannibal's hand, he was met with a mixture of reproach and concern.<br/>"Concerns have a habit of floating at the surface, Will. If your mind struggles with something, I would advise you to use worlds instead of alcohol."<br/>He would leave him alone with those words and go straight to his room after they arrived. <br/>At the same time it wasn´t hidden from him how beautiful this place was. It was a little, isolated house on the edge of Florence with a bright facade at the top of the Via di Soffiano street. Surrounded by trees and fields, it decorates a small mountain and cuts itself off from the outer world with a high hedge and a black gate. It´s sparsely furnished. It has two bathrooms, a living room combined with a kitchen, and a small cellar. <br/>Will chose the room upstairs in the middle. Abigail took the one on the left, Hannibal the one on the right. <br/>He must have prepared this months ago. Chose the country, bought this house, bought the flight tickets. Unintentionally the corners of his mouth climb up his face. <br/>He had romanticized with the thought of running away with Hannibal, with his friend. To live somewhere private. But the reality wasn´t as rewarding. It will take time to adapt to this new situation. To reduce the screams inside him into a whisper. <br/>And as he found a way out of his head again, he comes to realize that he wouldn´t be able to do this by himself. </p><p>So he opens the door. At once the dogs move, bustling through the door, into the hall, and down the stairs. Will follows them into the entrance hall and to the left into the living room where he finds Abigail sitting on the couch and reading a book about the interpretation of dreams. <br/>As the dogs gather themselves in front of her, her face lightens up and she throws herself to the ground, petting them instantly. <br/>"Good morning," Will says with a smile. He looks to the right into the kitchen area, only to find Hannibal´s absence.<br/>"Its noon already, Will," she answers.<br/>Will eyes her and rubs his hand over his face. "Oh." </p><p>Abigail stands up and goes by him. She arrives at the sink and opens the drawer next to it. <br/>"Does your head hurts? I could make you a tea if you like?" <br/>"We can drink one together," Will suggests in a soft tone, happy that she seems well. <br/>"Where is he?"<br/>Abigail fills water into the water heater and turns it on. "Shopping. Groceries, clothes. He should be back soon. Its been hours."<br/>Will nods. He takes two cups out of the cupboard and helps Abigail by filling the boiling water into the cups that she prepared with teabags.<br/>Will leads the way. He slides the door to the garden open and sits down on the first step of the small porch. Abigail follows and for a few minutes, they sit next to each other in silence, watching the dogs run and tackle each other."I like your dogs here."<br/>"Me, too. I think they can be very therapeutic, for both of us."<br/>"The ones under Hannibals wings." <br/>A grunt escapes his throat. He takes a sip of his tea, preparing himself for the next words that struggle to jump across his lips. "Was he good to you?" <br/>"He didn´t hurt me. He was just -"<br/>"He was Hannibal," Will added with a certain hardness to his voice. He catches her eyes for a moment before they escape over the hedge into the fields in front of them again. <br/>"Did he helped you with the nightmares?"<br/>Abigail frowns in thought and exhales. "Yes. We worked through the experiences I had with my dad. He helped me kill him. Did you kill him, too?"<br/>Will turns, his eyes piercing her. "I saw him again. I hunt with him, right before I was going to turn Hannibal in." <br/>"Did you see him since then?"<br/>"No." <br/>"I´m sorry, Will. For what has happened to you. The trial and everything," Abigail says, her eyes tearing up. <br/>"That wasn´t your fault, Abigail. Hannibal has his way of ... maneuvering people." <br/>"Are you under his compulsion now?" <br/>"I´ve been thinking clearly now for some time. Pushing him out of my head gives me the freedom to look at him from above. Seeing him in all his damage and glory. Seeing me, a part of me, reflecting. I want to dissect this image. I want to find the truth behind it. ... My truth." <br/>"To destroy it, or to save it?"<br/>"I guess, Hannibal himself will choose that for me," he answers with a smile without knowing what he is smiling about.</p><p>As they hear the door, simultaneously their heads turn to look behind them. Hannibal comes into the living room and puts three bags on the table. Will freezes, waiting for a shockwave to run him over.<br/>"Will, could you assist me with the groceries, please? They are in the trunk." <br/>Will nods, stands up, and as he walks through the living room and glances over to Hannibal, he sees a sparkle in his eyes, holding something sinister. </p><p>And as he walks through the door and looks in the trunk, he sees ...</p><p><br/>A big blood dripping box -    31.3%<br/>An unconscious body -          68.8%</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. The foundation for an opportunity</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Part 5</p><p>You decided: Will sees an unconscious body in the trunk.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Who is that," Will asks, feeling the slowly rising presents of Hannibal behind him.<br/>"I caught him for you, Will. Raw and fresh, right out of the stream."<br/>"I have to kill him?"<br/>Will turns around and sees Abigail approaching. She scans the situation and sends an angry look to Hannibal.<br/>"You don´t have to do anything that you don´t want. I can´t force you."<br/>"But this ... makes me worthy of your forgiveness?"<br/>"We are back in my kitchen. In my kitchen, we pushed the pause bottom, Will. We haven´t reached any conclusion. I would like to pick up where we left off. Wouldn´t you like to do that, too?"<br/>"Who is he," Will asks again and looks down to a man in his thirties, curled into the trunk. He has blond hair and wears a black suit with a purple tie.</p><p>As Hannibal refuses to give him an answer, he starts to search the pants of the man and finds a blue wallet. He pulls out the ID and discovers the name Lennox Bridges, resident in Whitley, England.<br/>But there is something else. A golden card catches his attention. He pulls it out. On the back, it says Room 101. Nothing else.<br/>He puts the wallet into his pocket and studies the evidence the scene provides.</p><p>Lennox could play the act of a successful CEO of a company if the yellow socks wouldn´t betray his cover. Just as the sparkling round earrings und the golden bracelet on his right wrist deny him standing ovations.</p><p>Will knows Hannibal wouldn´t just pick one of the streets. Maybe this one had been rude, but he has a feeling that Hannibal wouldn´t join the preparation for this meal. This fish is just for him. So it has to be something special. A fish that tries to hide in a swarm without noticing its different shape of scales. And suddenly Will gets the feeling that Hannibal´s encounter with this fish wasn´t that kind of a surprise.       </p><p>"We bring him down into the basement," Will says firmly and looks at Hannibal, eyes sending a demand. And that´s all it takes.<br/>They carry their guest into the house. The stairs next to the door lead them into the small, musty cellar where they lay the body on the floor. </p><p>"Abigail, please get a chair out of the kitchen," Hannibal instructs in a calm voice.<br/>"And two dog leashes," Will adds. Abigail does as she´s told.</p><p>While she´s away, no words are filling the room. Hannibal doesn´t want them and Will doesn´t need them. He needs no vocal explanation to know that he is in charge. Not because of his radiating aura, but because Hannibal wants it, demands it this way. A muppet under his navigating fingers. The only question is if he allows him to pull the strings around his limps or if he would allow himself to take the scissor and let it do what it's supposed to do. To snap.</p><p>Abigail comes back and puts the three things in the middle of the room, ready for Will to work. And so he does, starting with heaving Lennox onto the chair. Next he leads both of his arms to his lower back and ties them up at the wrists before wrapping the other leash two times around the torso and tying it firmly to the back of the chair. He leaves his legs free, building a foundation for an opportunity. Time and choices will tell for whom.</p><p>As he works, he feels Hannibal behind him, observing him with interest.</p><p>"Who do you see in front of you, Will," Hannibal asks.<br/>Will exhales while examining his work and feeling a spark of rage over Hannibal´s latest actions running through his body. <br/>"I see a man who doesn´t want you to think about him what you are thinking about him. He tries to cover it. He fails miserably. " Will moves around the slumped body without taking Abigail out of his sight.</p><p>On the one hand he doesn´t want to risk an overwhelming wave throwing her over her feet. But then again, he wants to study her face. Explore what the special care of Hannibal shaped her into.<br/>Her eyes flicker a little as he finishes his first round. She stays calm, her body doesn´t move. It´s anxiety that holds her arms tight at her thighs. Like she´s waiting for any possible outcome to dress up as a normal situation. She knows it wouldn´t be real, she´s just preparing herself mentally for the worst to come. <br/>Will can´t ignore the sheer amount of relief covering his soul.</p><p>But is he doing the same? Is he still just adapting, too? He has to, right? For her. To protect her. To maintain her purity. Or what's left of it.<br/>So why is he unable to shack this odd excitement that stirs up in his body of the thought of a red, dripping line around the neck of the one in front of him?</p><p>"This is a very expensive suit. But it doesn´t fit into the image that it draws. This suit feels lonely next to all the second-hand suits and the cheap T-Shirts and Jeans inside the closet. He is not a wealthy man, although he wants everyone to think that. He needs everybody to think that. He is part of a society. This society is not very high either. It´s a fraud, and all the gold and bling is a mark, the ticket. They want to feel like a gentleman club." Will´s disgust plows trenches in his forehead. "They applaud themselves for it."<br/>"Who are they," Abigail asks, more to Hannibal than to Will.<br/>Hannibal smiles. "Will can ask him himself," he answers and his chin jumps forward, guiding Will around to eye his now awakening guest.</p><p>A murmur rolls out of his mouth as his head finds its strength to lift the weight up. His eyelids tear apart, his pupils wander disorientated through the room. And slowly but surely he notices three strange faces in front of him. Immediately he starts to panic while realizing his limitations.</p><p>At this moment, Will hears his voice for the first time, the choice of words. That gives him all the missing pieces to complete the puzzle of his analysis. In these precious seconds in which shock cuts uncertainty, before awareness fogs up the ground with manipulation and survival strategies seals the entrance to the mind, a person shows his unspoiled truth. Nothing different from the last breath a person takes.</p><p>Will sees him in all his glory and feels his blood boiling up as he follows the trail of Lennox´s eyes, leading him to Abigail. Will notices how he goes through the file cards in his mind archive, just to come across an empty one.</p><p>In the twinkling of an eye the empath clenches his fist and punches against the cheekbones of his guest.<br/>The head smashes to the side and a gasp fills the room.</p><p>"Fuck, I´ve never seen her before. I didn´t touch her," he yells upset and spits blood on the ground.</p><p>Will pauses, thinking on his next move. He curls his lips. And with only one step he is close to Lennox again, grabbing his throat and shifting his weight on two legs of the chair while pressing him backward.</p><p>"Than who of you did," Will hisses and narrows the trachea. Lennox croaks and kicks his legs around, but Will keeps him in check by using the weight of his own.<br/>"I have no fucking clue, you little piece of shit. You have the wrong one!"<br/>Will pierces him with his eyes, pressing a little bit harder. "Than where do we find the others?"<br/>Lennox remains in silence, showing his bloody teeth defiantly.</p><p>Will´s hands tremble dangerously, his gasps are heating up the room. He is close to losing it. He turns around and eyes Abigail.<br/>"Go upstairs, please."</p><p>His eyes wander over to Hannibal. Without speaking up, he seems to receive the instruction Will gives him.<br/>He wants to move on, but something in Hannibal´s eyes leaves him bound to him. Transitions from calm to excitement. From warmth to cold, from concern to curiosity, never free of the unmerciful warning. That what they share. All of it. It´s so strong that Will has to tear him away or he would lose himself in him.</p><p>Since they jumped on the airplane, they didn´t need any words. They were both lost in their worlds, had left Abigail alone in reality. A sacrifice that the healing and connecting of their worlds promise to make up for it later. Will knows that this silence between them won´t be sustainable. They will have a long and tiring conversation about all of it. With Hannibal, it was inevitable. He had put them both on ice except for a little hole at their feet where a little burning flame had its fun consuming and tickling the first layers of their skin.</p><p>Will knows about this test. He knows about the knife in the right pocket of Hannibal's trousers. Its always there, always whispering about its thirst for punishment. So that Hannibal could use this outbursting blanket of blood to press it against his wounds.</p><p>Will exhales and reaches out to him. An offering of another kind of bandage?</p><p>Abigail observes Hannibal moving his hand and sliding it into his pocket. He doesn´t lift it lonesome.<br/>She shakes her head. "Please, no. Don´t do it. Not for that guy ... for you," Abigail begs strained, her look pregnant with concern about him. Will eyes her but denies her any relief.</p><p>"Do what I said. I don´t want you to see this," Will replies, and the hasty gasps behind him drive something through him. He waits until Abigail leaves them. Then he turns around and approaches Lennox with the curved, glossy blade.</p><p>He grabs his neck and drags him forward, forcing the blade to bite right under his pupil.</p><p>"Don´t move. If you do, it could slip into your eye," Will warns him playful.<br/>For a few seconds, Will just stares down at his inferior. Eyes wide, filled with horror, fixating the blade as if he could summon it to move away.</p><p>Suddenly an explosion of arousal shoots through Will´s body that nearly triggers his legs to give in. He needs a few more seconds to collect himself. He let his eyes flee, concentrates, and then releases the loaded energy in him as gently and unnoticed as he can.</p><p>"Let's try this again, shall we? Where do we find the others involved?" Still no answer. So Will answers him instead by letting the knife scratch a little bit higher.<br/>"Okay, okay. Fuck! ... Tomorrow is a new event. In Monte Argentario, Provincia di Grosseto. It´s an old mansion at the end of the Via Genova road, hidden on top of the mountain."<br/>Will nods and straightens himself up. He removes the knife from the skin and observes how it leaves a thin red line behind.</p><p>"How many are in the group? And tell me how exactly one would manage to enter this event."<br/>"I don´t know how many. It began with three guys. It grew in the last years. We all get an invitation along with a gold card when there is a new one. We don´t keep contact throughout the years, we don´t see each other. A friend of mine hooked me up to it a few years ago. He quit last year. They drive different girls to the mansion. From different countries. We party and after a while -."<br/>Will´s eye twitches. "And after a while?"<br/>Lennox swallows nervously.<br/>"Listen man. I just wanted to have a little fun. I don´t know any of those girls. They come with a bus, and we have just a little fun with them. They can go after that. We don´t hurt any of them. They can leave."</p><p>Will´s grip around the knife gets firmer. His face dips into ice.</p><p>That wasn´t enough.</p><p><em>It seems like you are searching for the right words, Lennox. To trigger my mercy.</em> Will feeds on the desperation of his guest. It´s a tasty, but massive dish. He devours it more and more. Faster and faster, provoking his stomach.<br/>"I didn´t touch your girl, man. I don´t know who did, but she is here, isn´t she? She´s not dead."<br/>Not enough.</p><p><em>Careful now.</em> Will´s fingernails drill into his skin.</p><p>"I think a few of them even enjoyed it. It sometimes seemed like it. So I just thought, it would be alright. I´m so sorry for what I did. I -."<br/>Not enough.</p><p><em>That´s enough!</em> A cramp crawls through Will´s muscle. He holds his breath ...</p><p> </p><p>Signpost:</p><p>1. Will kills Lennox<br/>2. Will lowers the knife and punches him again</p>
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